It is constantly a surprise to me how many parallels there were in Rome to our culture today. We think that technology has changed everything and yet it really has not. Men and women are still human and we have not succeeded in changing that.

Here is a brief quote from a book called Roman Sexualities by Judith Hallett and Marilyn Skinner (paperback, page 81):

Actors and acresses were regularly assumed to be prostitutes. We should not deduce that this was because many actors and actresses sold their sexual services. Rather, the way in which they made their living, exposing themselves to public view, their bodies objects of fascination and desire, was perceived to be analogous to the way in which prostitutes made their living. Like prostitutes, their bodies had to please—as did those of the gladiators. The very sight of these performers was thought to produce sexual desire [example censored].

Is this so different from our culture? There sure are a lot of gasps from women when certain guys remove their shirts on the big screen. Popular clothing styles imitate the attempt to please with our bodies. Is nothing else important?

Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that we should try to be ugly, but there is more to life and we are emphasizing something that disappears so quickly.